I'm like most of the people who have a hard time appreciating any achievements presented in the making of this film. Unlike most people (I'm sure) I decided to watch this without realizing it was a KKK propaganda film. To call this movie offensive would be an understatement. It became so ridiculous that I started to wonder if it might be satirical. While I appreciate the deep offense that some feel when seeing this movie, it became so absurd that it was a little less offensive than it might have been otherwise.

I give this 5 stars not because it's a good story or because of any so-called achievements. I think it's an important part of American history, despite its gross misrepresentations. I've known a lot of people to be offended by things like Huck Finn, even though they've never read them. People merely heard that such things are bad, and why they're bad, and totally write them off as being of no value. To me, this movie tells the climate of our nation back then. The attitudes of our nation back then. And, it's hard to know what we're supposedly overcoming without having some view into where we were in the past.

These types of movies show us where we were as a nation, and where we are now by comparison. Anyone claiming to be a scholar of Afro-American history, especially, should watch this film. Read Uncle Tom's Cabin. Appreciate things like this for providing a lens through which to see the experiences of people long before our time. These things provide some context for statements like "struggle against inequality". To me, at least, this film is a very important part of American History.

If you didn't know, this is a pretty long movie. So, be prepared for it to be a little dull or drawn out at times (particularly in the beginning). This isn't a movie to watch for "fun" unless you're a nerd who is entertained by history or cinematography.

Okay, despite the bad reviews mixed in, I wanted to give this stuff a shot. Sulfur is really good for dealing with breakouts, and I was hoping that maybe this would be a step up from the mask I use.

After very long debate, I ordered this and it arrived just in time to be tested at the tail end of my... hormonal time of the month. I had one large pimple, and this was effective at drying it out. The rest is pretty bad.

When I applied it to the pimple, I also applied it to the area surrounding it. It shrank the size of the pimple I had, but cause a PAINFUL red lump under the skin next to it. I also applied this to a tiny white head in a different location. In theory it was so small I could have just scratched off with my nail if I were so inclined. Very tiny. It, too, turned very red, very painful, and inflamed to more than twice the original size!

This can't be. I applied more to the red lump it caused, just to see, trying to give it the benefit of the doubt, and it went down. At that point, I'm kind of like... well maybe I shouldn't give up just yet. Some days later, I applied it just to an area prone to clogged pores. (Oh, I'm a daredevil.) Yet again, I ended up with a large, painful red lump under my skin. Only this time, the sulfur ointment did nothing to decrease the size, but instead made it bigger when I used it again!

I'm glad that some people have found this useful, but it's a bust for me. I was skeptical with this being in grease form, but took the risk. Now I know I wasn't missing anything good! If you do try this, the grittiness isn't *that* bad. It's sort of like A&D ointment with a little baking soda mixed in as far as texture is concerned. I also wouldn't recommend smearing this over large areas of skin until you know if you can tolerate it. The smell wasn't too bad. If you're used to cleaning silver with a vinegar and baking soda solution, it's no where near that strong in odor. The scent is tolerable, and even though it's a small container, you don't need to use much of it for spot treatments.

For me, personally, the terrible side effects outweigh the minimal usefulness.

Black may not crack, but my genetic material hasn't gotten the one drop rule memo yet. My mum's half black, 65, and not a line to be found anywhere on her face. The work I have to put into keep my rear end where her's just naturally remains, stubbornly defying gravity, is unbelievable. Unfortunately, the uncrackable black rule doesn't always apply to peanut butter! (yes, I am kind of jealous lol.)

I may be making a mountain out of a mole hill on this one, but I discovered a "dry skin" induced fine line on my forehead, about a half inch in length. Whatever the true cause of this unsightly thing (which had me ready to make my first botox appointment at the tender age of 32) this stuff fixed it in no time.

More yoga, more water, more SPF, no more sun bathing, and this stuff. I'm one of those people who abhorred looking like a kid until plucking that first gray hair... and that line which I will never admit was ever there.

Joking aside now lol, this is pretty strong stuff! I have very sensitive skin, and have a reaction of some sort to about 1/4 of the products I try out there. Luckily, I have no problems with this product so long as I space it out. I started out using it every night, but cut back because my skin felt a little irritated after a few days. Every other night is enough for it to work. That little thing was gone from my face in about a week. Now I use it about 2 to 4 times per week and it hasn't returned.

The down side of this product is that it's kind of tingly! Since I react to so many product this was alarming initially, but I've gotten used to it. Strangely I've found that it tingles more when I apply moisturizer on top of it. If you have oily or combination skin, this product might be moisturizing enough on it's own. I have combination skin, but still like to apply moisturizer a few minutes after applying this. I have not tried any other anti-aging products out there to know how this stuff compares to anything else.

Personally, I don't care much for the way my face feels with this lotion. I also don't like that it doesn't have an SPF. I purchased this moisturizer along with the cleanser this winter after my face completely dried out due to the excessive cold. I just bought the lotion to go with the cleanser, not expecting much of it. The cleanser I wanted because I figured something soap-free would be better for dry winter skin.

Well, even with regular facial cleanser, this lotion *really* solves the dry skin problem. I was to the point of slathering my face with vitamin E every night after applying my night cream. While I love vitamin E, it's not always the most comfortable thing to have to wear. Unfortunately, the feel of the Cetaphil moisturizer isn't all that great either. It is the lotion to use when you NEED it to deal with skin issues, but not something I'd reach for otherwise. It's a sort of heavy, sticky (extra glycerine maybe?) kind of feeling.... as if it doesn't fully absorb into the skin.

The catch being, I guess, that this extra heaviness is needed to cure dry skin problems. Nothing else I used helped at all. So this gets 4 stars for getting the job done, but I still hate the texture.

I wanted a stronger SPF and decided to try the 30. As is usually the case, I don't care much for the texture of this higher SPF. Otherwise it's okay. Unless you really need a higher SPF, you'll probably like the feel of the SPF 15 better. This one seems greasy. I have combination skin, but even when I dried out this winter I didn't care much for the texture of it. The extra grease didn't seem to help my dry skin problem either! It just made me shiny lol. I still use this (just to finish the bottle), but only mixed with make up.

I haven't tried the tinted version of this moisturize because they don't make it in brown *ahem!*. :-)

This polish is lighter and brighter than it appears in the images I've seen online, especially on brown skin. Very, very orangey. I'll probably love this color by summer, but right now it's just okay. The drying time is just fine, and it takes 2 coats for full coverage. The overall consistency and color are just okay. To me, it's a color better suited for nail art or accent nails, than standing on it's own.

This color wasn't quite what I was expecting, and is very much so in that pink family. It's nice, but not amazing or anything. It's a bright color, especially on brown skin. The application was just fine, no problems with opacity or drying time. Covers in two coats. The quality is just fine, but I was underwhelmed by the color. Maybe I'll love it by summer. :-)

The only thing good about this mask is that it didn't irritate my sensitive skin (compared to Ahava and Biore, etc). The bad was that it caused a number of new breakouts but didn't do anything for the couple of active breakouts I had before the mask. Further, it ruptured the breakouts it caused, which led to dark marks!

I honestly don't know if it actually brought impurities beneath the skin to the surface or it simply caused me to break out. I know it certainly didn't clear my pores. I didn't turn red or end up with hives or burns or anything, so I suppose that's the upside. Otherwise, for the price, I'm pretty disappointed. Sulfur masks seem to do a better job, by drying out active breakouts instead of making them larger. After the first use of this mask my face was worse than it was before I used it. By the 4th I was no better off.

I used this with warm compresses and also with steaming, and neither method made a difference in the end result. While there is no research out there to support charcoal's ability to draw impurities from the pores, I took a chance on this product based on the rave reviews. In the end, I had to go back to my sulfur mask to undo what this had done to my face.

Starting with the bad: This mask can stain your wash cloths when you remove it. It's an intense mint that may be pretty uncomfortable to some people. If you have super sensitive skin you may not want to smear it over your entire face until you've gotten used to the sensation. No, it's not a miracle in a tube.

The good: It's cheap. It's effective. Works quickly. There's no "purging" break out phase. (which I don't believe there should ever be with any product, anyway)

Best case scenario: If you use it as a spot treatment over night, your break out will be gone the next day. Does this happen every single time? No. Most of the time? No. Typically, you will just see a very noticeable reduction in the size of a break out. It certainly speeds up the healing process. It does not make a pimple bigger or bring it to a head as some masks do... which can lead to scaring! Instead, this mask dries it out and shrinks the size till it's gone.

Like with most masks, this is most effective when you steam your face first. At the very least, use a warm towel on your face for a few minutes before applying the mask.

I decided to venture out seeing as this has been my staple mask since high school. It's a drug store masque, and I thought it might be in the best interest of my now older skin to upgrade. I wanted to see if maybe I'm missing out on something better. I tried Origins and Ahava, and quickly went back to my trusty Mint Julep. Both broke me out, and the Ahava also irritated my skin leaving me with red blotches. Queen Helene definitely doesn't fit into the "you get what you pay for" realm. Yes, it's even better than Proactiv's *current* sulfur mask (the original was actually good).

This mask was far too strong for me. It both burned my skin and caused new break outs. When I say burned I mean that it left me with little red patches that eventually scabbed over. An actual chemical burn. I did not leave it on for longer than directed either. As I applied this mask I started to feel a tingling/burning sensation, and wasn't immediately sure if the mask was supposed to tingle or if I was having a reaction to it. So, when the 2 minute mark hit I already had a cloth in hand ready to remove it. The feeling intensified A LOT. I still don't know if this mask is actually supposed to tingle/burn slightly, but the feeling I had was pretty bad. I use Queen Helene's Mint Julep, which is not for the faint of heart, and the tingling sensation is pretty intense.

In addition to the lovely scabs, I had a few large red pimples after removing the mask. Before I applied the mask my only problem was one cystic pimple taking it's time to go away (caused by my cycle) and clogged pores. I was planning to try a couple of new masks so I stopped using my usual one for awhile so that I could really see how effective this would be.

Instead of using my regular cleanser, I used Ahava's 3 in one cleanser before applying this mask. I did not steam my face before using this mask as I normally would, because I'd never used it before. I have very sensitive skin and steaming before hand could have made a bad reaction worse. So, if you have sensitive skin be very careful with this one.